Years before his groundbreaking grunge collection for Perry Ellis, Marc Jacobs was a student at Parsons School of Design. It was during that time, in the Eighties, when Jacobs famously designed his first oversize handknitted sweaters that became his first major sartorial statement and a staple in many fashion archives.

Now, three decades later, Parsons The New School for Design is honoring the CFDA Board Member, alongside LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton which owns a majority stake in the designer’s business , at its annual fashion benefit in May.

“Marc represents the best of a Parsons education,” Joel Towers, Parsons; executive dean of Parsons School of Design at The New School. “He brings creativity and cultural insight to his influential designs.”

Jacobs, who graduated from Parsons in 1984 launched Marc Jacobs International in 1993 and since added bags, accessories, shoes, fragrances and cosmetics.  In addition to the Marc Jacobs label, there is Marc by Marc Jacobs, Little Marc for his younger fans and Bookmarc, which the designer added to his lineup of stores on Bleecker Street in 2010, the same year he won the CFDA Fashion Award for Womenswear (Jacobs has won a total of 10 CFDA Fashion Awards).

Past Parsons honorees included CFDA Members such as Jason Wu, Donna Karan, Reed Krakoff, Francisco Costa, and well as CFDA president, Diane von Furstenberg.